Johannesburg - Transport Minister, Fikile Mbalula on Wednesday said it was in the law that traffic officers must be identifiable to the public.
"Our law enforcement officers are expected to carry their duties professionally within the ambits of our laws, Section 3A subsection 7 of the National Road Traffic Act provides for traffic officer to be identifiable," Mbalula said.
His comments came after a video was circulated on social media where a woman was heard requesting the names of two Tshwane Metropolitan Police Department officers after they requested to see her driver's license. After a short verbal interaction, the officers just drove off.
Mbalula commended the woman for holding traffic officers to account and warned against abuse of power.
"Over the next few days, I will launch our Festive Season Road Safety programme. This programme falls within our 365 Road Safety campaign. Through this, we will be conducting law enforcement operations as well as road safety education and awareness throughout the country," Mbalula said.
In this video a woman is heard requesting names of two Tshwane Metropolitan Police Department officers. Screeshot: Twitter
Mbalula said the national road traffic act stated that a traffic officer must be identifiable and members of the public were entitled to request identification or appointment certificates.
These measures were put in place to guard against abuse of power and corruption. The Criminal Procedure Act stipulates that an officer who cannot or will not provide such identification is in violation of the Act.
"Likewise, when a member of the public is stopped by traffic officers, they are obliged to give their names and addresses when requested," Mbalula said.
"There are many law enforcement officers who do their jobs diligently with professionalism and dedication. It is these officers who keep our roads safe and ensure we arrive alive at our homes and places of work."